Declared Monument by the Antiquities + Monuments Office

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Hong Kong Culture | The Duddell Street Gas Lamps | Hong Kong

Duddell Street Gas Lamps and Stone Steps in Hong Kong - Detailed History

I love these Gas Lamps (not so much the steps!) and it is a real shame that not many people actually visit them and it is not as if they are hard to find, just opposite the Landmark complex on Queens Road Central and about 7 minutes walk from the Mid Levels Escalator.

Duddell Street is a short, atmospheric lane tucked away in the heart of Central District, Hong Kong, fairly close to the bustling Lan Kwai Fong entertainment area. It was named after George and Frederick Duddell, two brothers who arrived from Macau shortly after the British annexation of Hong Kong in 1841. George worked as an auctioneer and became a prominent early colonial landowner with significant property holdings in the area during the mid-19th century. The street itself is one of the few remaining pockets of old Central that still feels like a step back in time amid the surrounding skyscrapers.

It also has a reputation for snarling up traffic in the business district, it is basically a one way road leading onto Queens Road Central, it is not very wide and because people park on the street two way traffic comes to a grinding halt especially when trucks enter the street, see image below, the steps and gas lamps are at the end and watch out for the traffic, lots of vehicles doing u - turns

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Hong Kong Culture | Duddell Street, Central | Hong Kong

Basically you walk the entire length of Duddell Street to get to the stone steps which takes about 3 minutes

The street runs northward from Ice House Street down to Queen’s Road Central. At its southern end (the upper section), there is a charming flight of granite steps that connects the two levels. These steps were completed in 1883 (historical maps and archival records show the structure already in place sometime between 1875 and 1889, somewhat confusing if you ask me!). They are built of solid granite blocks with retaining walls on either side and feature elegant, heavily moulded newels, rails, and balusters in the classic Tuscan architectural order - a style that reflects the British colonial influence of the era. The steps have always served as a practical pedestrian link, but over time they have become one of Central’s most photographed and filmed historic features…. I have been there a number of times recently and failed to spot any tourists taking photo’s for social media

Perched on the balustrades at both the top and bottom of these steps are the four iconic gas lamps - two at the upper end and two at the lower end. These are the only surviving working gas street lamps in the entire city. They are two-light “Rochester” models manufactured by the British firm William Sugg & Co. Ltd. in the United Kingdom and were installed in the early twentieth century (most likely around the 1920s). The lamp columns were deliberately shortened by the makers so they could sit neatly on the newel posts of the steps rather than standing at full street height. Originally, each lamp had to be lit and extinguished manually every day by a lamplighter. Today they are operated automatically by the Hong Kong and China Gas Company (Towngas) and glow gently from 6 pm to 6 am daily, still using town gas.

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Hong Kong Culture | The Duddell Street Gas Lamps | Hong Kong

Background on Gas Lighting in Hong Kong

Gas lighting arrived in Hong Kong in 1864 when the Hong Kong and China Gas Company (now known as Towngas) opened its first gasworks on Whitty Street in Shek Tong Tsui. Towngas was actually formed in 1862 according to records. This made Hong Kong the first city in Asia to have public gas lighting – a huge technological leap at the time. Before that, the streets relied on simple oil lamps placed in doorways or public oil lamps installed between Central and Wan Chai in the 1850s. Gas lighting quickly became the standard for illuminating the growing colonial city because it was brighter and more reliable than oil. (Kowloon only received gas lighting 28 years later.) For decades, teams of lamplighters would walk the streets at dusk and dawn with long poles to light and extinguish the lamps by hand.

By the mid-20th century, however, electricity was taking over. The last traditional gas street lamps in Hong Kong were phased out around 1964 - 1967 as the city completed its full electrification of public lighting. After that point, these four lamps on Duddell Street became - and remain - the only working examples of their kind still in daily operation anywhere in Hong Kong.

Monument Status and Recent Restoration In 1979

the stone steps and the four gas lamps were officially declared a monument by the Antiquities and Monuments Office - one of the first colonial-era structures in Hong Kong to receive this legal protection. They are still maintained in excellent condition by the Highways Department and Towngas.

In September 2018 Super Typhoon Mangkhut caused serious damage when a large tree growing on a nearby wall crashed down onto the steps, smashing granite railings, cement balusters, and three of the lamp posts into hundreds of pieces. A meticulous restoration project followed, using original materials and traditional craftsmanship wherever possible, supplemented by 3D laser scanning and printing technology to ensure every fragment was put back exactly where it belonged. The steps and lamps were beautifully restored and officially re-opened to the public on 23 December 2019, with the century-old gas lamps once again casting their warm glow over the granite steps.

Are there any other gas lamps left in Hong Kong?

These four on Duddell Street are the only remaining working, gas-powered street lamps still in active daily use. While a handful of disused or converted gas-lamp posts (some turned into electric lights) can occasionally be spotted in other heritage locations around the city, none are operational gas lamps like these. Duddell Street’s quartet truly stands alone as the last authentic survivors of Hong Kong’s gas-lighting era., I have lived here for over 50 years and have never seen any street lights that look remotely like these gas lamps.

The lamps and steps are a perfect “time tunnel” stop on any Central walking tour. People love the romantic, old-world atmosphere, especially in the evening when the lamps are lit. It’s also a favourite filming location for Hong Kong dramas and movies because of that unmistakable colonial charm.

Contact Jamie

I do not do Food Tours in Hong Kong but I know people that do!

I do not do food tours as mentioned above, I have very specific reasons and part of it is that I do not speak Cantonese or write Chinese, I am from Yorkshire in England and I lack the language gene and it is not through lack of trying and yes a lot of restaurants do not have English menu’s or staff who speak conversational English.

.. and yet I have eaten at close to 1,400 restaurants in Hong Kong since January 2nd 1972, my wife was born in Hong Kong and we have been together over 40 years and her first language is Cantonese and a lot of her family are Chinese or half Chinese so I have never had much of an issue!

This does not translate to doing food tours though, yes, I could do them, no problem there but they would never ever be as good as the food tours done by my friends (see the 3 links above) most of their awesome guides are locally born Hong Kong Chinese and obviously food culture is part of their DNA, it is impossible for me to compete with that!

So please feel free to contact them for food tours

Learn more | The Best Food Tours in Hong Kong 1 - Hong Kong Foodie Tours

Learn more | The Best Food Tours in Hong Kong 2 - Hong Kong Greeters

Learn More | The Best Food Tours in Hong Kong 3 - Hello Hong Kong